China has world's largest, most advanced 5G network: report

China has built the world's largest and most advanced 5G network, with its 5G base stations accounting for over 60 percent of the world's total, according to a report released Thursday at the World Internet Conference (WIC) Wuzhen Summit in the eastern Zhejiang Province.

As of June 2024, China had 3.837 million 5G base station, with a penetration rate of 5G users exceeding 60 percent, according to the China Internet Development Report 2024 released at the summit.

This year's China Internet Development Report, released by the Chinese Academy of Cyberspace Studies (CACS), shows that China has become the world's largest internet market, boasting the highest number of internet and mobile internet users, supported by the world's largest and most advanced network infrastructure.

Furthermore, the advancement of the internet has fueled the expansion of China's digital economy. In 2023, the added value of the core industries of China's digital economy exceeded 12 trillion yuan (about 1.6 trillion U.S. dollars), making up about 10 percent of its GDP, according to the report.

"From 2018 to 2023, the scale of China's cross-border e-commerce grew from about 1 trillion yuan (about 138 billion U.S. dollars) to about 2.4 trillion yuan (about 332 billion U.S. dollars)," said Li Wei, an associate research fellow at the CACS, at a press conference during the Wuzhen Summit. The digital economy's growth is also reflected in the boom of digital culture industries like short dramas, online literature, digital games, and animation, which are becoming increasingly popular both domestically and internationally. "By December 2023, the size of China's online entertainment and media market, featuring long and short videos, live streaming, and audio, was valued at 1.152481 trillion yuan (about 160 billion U.S. dollars). The domestic gaming market generated 302.964 billion yuan (about 42 billion U.S. dollars) in sales. In addition, the global market for Chinese online literature surpassed 4 billion yuan (about 553 million U.S. dollars), attracting 230 million overseas internet users," said Qian Xianliang, deputy director of the CACS.

The four-day 2024 WIC Wuzhen Summit concluded Friday in the water town of Wuzhen in Zhejiang Province, east China.

Themed "Embracing a People-centered and AI-for-good Digital Future -- Building a Community with a Shared Future in Cyberspace," the summit featured 24 sub-forums on topics such as the Global Development Initiative, digital economy and data governance.

China has world's largest, most advanced 5G network: report

As much as 37 percent of Americans saw their debt increase during this year's holiday shopping season, with average debt rising to 1,223 U.S. dollars from 1,181 dollars last year, according to the latest holiday debt survey of LendingTree, the nation's online loan marketplace.

The survey, conducted earlier this month among more than 2,000 U.S. consumers, found that rising tariffs and higher prices have put additional pressure on household budgets.

In a statement, LendingTree's chief consumer finance analyst Matt Schulz said the strain becomes more pronounced during the holiday season, as many consumers are reluctant to change long-standing shopping traditions, even as costs rise, leading to higher debt levels.

According to the survey, 63 percent of borrowers expect it will take three months or longer to repay their holiday-related debt, while about 41 percent said they are still paying off debt from last year. Schulz warned that if borrowers need six months to a year or more to repay their balances, the situation becomes more serious due to high credit card interest rates.

Data from Bankrate show that the average U.S. credit card interest rate currently exceeds 20 percent.

Meanwhile, U.S. consumers have grown increasingly pessimistic about their financial situation. Data released on Tuesday by The Conference Board showed that the U.S. Consumer Confidence Index fell for the fifth consecutive month in December, dropping to 89.1, the lowest level since April, amid deepening anxiety over jobs and income.

Over one-third of Americans rack up holiday debt: survey